Days Fly By
by Dollhousesareforwhimps
Summary: A series of vignettes concerning Souji and Yosuke's relationship.
1. April 12, 2011: Meeting

This is a kinkmeme fill based on a prompt asking for Souji and Yosuke as "heterosexual life partners". Essentially, friendship fic. However, there will be an alternate ending to this series of vignettes which will cast it all in a decidedly new light. I'll make sure to mark that chapter, so that those of you who prefer them as friends can avoid it. As for now, enjoy!

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**April 12, 2011**

Yosuke didn't really do the whole friend thing.

Or rather, that's what he would tell himself, smiling smugly at how cool and aloof he sounded while he walked his bike down the flood plain on his way to school; alone. Again. Still, once he passed the Yasogami High gates and overheard the chatting of eager girls or the echoing slap of a high five, the mask would slip slightly and the longing would set in.

It had been half a year. Six months. One hundred sixty-three days. Yosuke knew; he kept count. Each day brought another tally mark to his old and over-loved Risette calendar; like a prisoner marking off how much time he'd served. Yosuke would have liked to carve those lines into the wall (for the poetic symbolism of it all, of course), but he doubted his mother would appreciate a dedication to authenticity in this case. In truth, Yosuke was thankful. He could tuck the calendar away if he wanted; he didn't have to face the fact that while the number of days stuck in this town steadily increased, his number of friends stayed at zero.

That wasn't to say he didn't get attention; Junes made sure of that. When Yosuke first arrived in Inaba that had almost been a good thing. Junes was new and exciting, just like him, and everyone seemed eager to be the first to show the transfer student around or the first to take the transfer student out for some grilled steak. There were a lot of firsts in that month, culminating with the first family-run store closing its doors. No one seemed to find his clumsiness or jokes quite as charming after that.

Yosuke chained up his bike, fumbling with the lock longer than necessary as he psyched himself up for another school year of huge, plastic grins and putting himself in harm's way for the amusement of his classmates. Sure, it may be that his classmates were laughing at him not with him…but a laugh was a laugh, right? Turning away from the bicycle rack, Yosuke caught a flash of gray hair moving in his peripheral vision. Turning, his eyes widened to see that it was the boy from earlier. And not only that, he was moving towards him, wearing an expression of polite hope. Maybe he was going to ask him how he was after the fall--

"Excuse me? Do you know where the faculty office is?"

Guess not.

"Uh, yeah," Yosuke nodded, twining and untwining his headphone cord around his fingers, "Just take a right at the shoe lockers, they have a sign posted above the door. Can't miss it."

"Thanks," Gray replied with a grateful smile. Yosuke returned it. Then Gray left.

"…Goodbye to you, too," Yosuke supplied with a sigh, shoving his headphones over his ears and turning the volume dial to max. He may be whittling away at his hearing, but at least the pounding bass that hung around him audibly gave Yosuke an excuse for why no one but confused new kids wanted to talk to him.


	2. April 15, 2011: Five More Minutes

**April 15, 2011**

Yosuke rubbed the severed rope that he'd tied around his waist between his palms, willing it to splinter and burn him. Anything to keep the creeping numbness from crawling back over his skin.

Saki was really gone. And not only that, even while she was alive, she…

Yosuke focused harder on the rope, rubbing his hands together frantically while the sharp strands cut into him. From an outward perspective, with hands clasped tightly and shoulders shaking, Yosuke looked as if he was freezing. Upon closer inspection, however, the sheen of sweat was visible across his forehead. If Souji was bothering to look that closely, he wasn't saying anything about it. Yosuke was grateful, although shame was lingering as well.

It had been Souji who suggested they take a break, citing his own sore legs. Yosuke knew better. While the gray haired boy who had taken him into this strange place walked with unfaltering energy, Yosuke flagged. His eyes burned, his feet dragged, and his head felt as if it was about to split open while it adjusted to the new being that resided there. The being that had been born from…from that thing. That monster. The one Souji had defeated, protecting him. And now here he was, standing ever vigilant while Yosuke sat huddled on the ground in silence. He was _still_ protecting him, even now that Yosuke had the same power; that he could protect _himself._

If he hadn't been so exhausted, Yosuke would've gotten angry. But he was, so he didn't, instead taking out his tired frustrations on that goddamn broken rope.

"Why are you taking so long?" Teddie asked impatiently, foot tapping with an infuriating _squeak squeak squeak_, "The exit isn't far from here! You could've been home by now!"

Souji said nothing for a long moment and looked back at Yosuke, his gaze lingering even while he addressed their bear companion, "Five more minutes, then we'll get going."

Yosuke didn't look up. He didn't even make a sound, beyond the noise of the rope rubbing his palms raw. Souji didn't call him on it.

In five minutes, the gray haired boy walked over and gripped Yosuke by the wrist before hoisting him to his feet. Yosuke didn't say thank you or ask him for more time, simply walking alongside him towards the exit in contemplative silence.

Once again, Souji didn't mind.


	3. June 17, 2011: The Art of Male Bonding

**June 17, 2011**

"Dude, what the hell was that?"

Yosuke scowled, laying his head down on crossed arms while he turned towards the lamp. It was battery powered, but flickered almost like a real lantern might. Yosuke stared at it intensely while he tried to block out the disappointment in Souji's voice.

"Whatever, man, he's gone. Let's take advantage of that and get some real rest!" His tone was light, which only made Souji's frown deepen. Yosuke rolled his eyes. "…Oh, Christ, next thing you know you'll be telling me you're 'like that' too-"

"And what if I was?" Souji interrupted, eyebrow raised in quiet challenge. Yosuke let out a bark of laughter, shooting his friend a look that said something along the lines of 'yeah fucking _right_'. Souji's face colored out of embarrassment and frustration while he fixed Yosuke with a glare and restated his question more firmly, "C'mon, what if I was? Would you be shaming _me_ out of the tent too?"

"It wasn't _my_ fault that he-!" Souji silenced him with a look, prompting the brunette to flop on his back with a ragged sigh, "How could you ask me something like that, man? You know the answer is no."

"Why?"

"What the hell do you mean 'why'?"

"Why Kanji and not me? If it's his confusion you have such a problem with, why the hell-"

Yosuke groaned and rolled onto his stomach, burying his face in his pillow. Souji stopped speaking and rested his chin on his knuckles patiently. He'd known Yosuke long enough to sense when he was gathering his thoughts.

Yosuke must've had a lot of thoughts to gather, because he didn't speak up for a long time, laying so silently that Souji might've thought the boy had gone to sleep…but he knew better and his patience paid off in the end. Yosuke shifted onto his side, supporting his head on his palm while he tried to keep himself from getting caught in Souji's penetrating gray stare.

"It's not that."

Souji was hoping for more than three words, but at least it was Isomething/I, "What's not what? Try being more direct for a change, you could be talking about air fresheners for all I know." Yosuke scoffed, rolling restlessly onto his back.

"All the pine is going to your head," he shot back, though the playfulness that usually colored his words was noticeably absent, "And what I mean is…I didn't…I mean, I wasn't teasing him because of _that_, y'know? I mean, it's weird and all, but it's not like a deal breaker. I was just pissed off because he…and you…" Yosuke growled in frustration with his own inarticulateness, raking his hands through his hair. Souji's frown changed from quiet disapproval to tentative curiosity.

"Him and me what?" he asked, his quiet voice cutting through the crickets with surprising effectiveness.

"You said he could stay," Yosuke mumbled, eyes cast downward as he twisted the plain silver band around his index finger nervously.

"So?"

"'So'? So you knew I didn't want him in here."

"Look, just because you have a problem with him doesn't mean I have to agree with-"

"_Shut up_, that wasn't why!" Yosuke seethed, lips pursed with irritation while his face flushed deeply, "I just…when I found out it was going to be just us in here I was, I dunno…I thought it would be kind of cool."

"What, having more room to sleep?" Souji was smiling, trying to relax his friend a little, all his initial frustrations forgotten. Yosuke rolled his eyes and threw back a longsuffering sigh, but Souji could see the corners of his mouth twitch with amusement.

"_No_," he clarified, crossing his arms, "I've just…don't think this is lame or anything, but I've never actually had a sleepover before, so I…" Yosuke winced, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger, "Oh fuck, I sound like I'm ten years old."

Souji was grinning, but not with derisiveness or condescension, "Oh, get off it, does it look like I'm about to put you in a time out or something?"

"Ha ha, very funny," Yosuke glared, even though the smile he'd been so diligently trying to suppress now broke past his defenses, "But do you get what I'm saying? I thought we could, I dunno, stay up all night talking about stuff…" Yosuke's voice got smaller and smaller while he spoke until it eventually trailed off into silence. But when Souji's grin softened to a warm smile, the brunette couldn't help but return it.

"Wanna know something?"

"Sure, as long as it doesn't involve roaches."

"I've never had a sleepover before either."

Yosuke laughed in the same dismissive way that he had when Souji asked him that ridiculous 'What if I was gay' question. More like the entire male teenage population of Inaba _wished_ Souji Seta was gay. The guy was just too cool, too popular, too interesting. He wasn't awkward around people like Yosuke was, he didn't have an entire mall tied to his waist to drag him down, and he was terrible at lying to make Yosuke feel better. It was _obvious_ that was all this was -- Souji had to be rolling in sleepovers. One every weekend. One every _night_. If the government went mad and proclaimed slumber parties the new national currency, Souji would be the one everyone went to for a loan. He was about to tell him so, too, when his partner cut him off.

"Don't believe me, do you? Let me guess, you think I'm Mr. Cool wherever I go, right?"

"Not if you call yourself Mr. Cool…"

"You _do_, don't you?"

"Well can you blame me?" Yosuke asked, the corners of his mouth tightening, "The instant you move to Inaba, no one can shut up about you, you have tons of friends, and you act like none of it surprises you…you can't possibly expect me to believe that someone gets that confident overnight."

"Who said I was confident?"

"…Dude, c'mon."

"Okay, fine, but it's not like I'm facing everyone alone."

Yosuke furrowed his brow at that statement, staring at Souji curiously. Souji just stared back, an easy smile playing across his lips. "What, you mean Izanagi or something…?"

"No," Souji said simply, grabbing one of Kanji's abandoned animal crackers and popping it into his mouth, speaking around it with an unattractive _munch munch_, "I mean you."

Yosuke's face went blank, staring at his friend open mouthed. Souji only laughed.

"Catching flies?" Yosuke's mouth snapped shut with a scowl.

"What do you mean, 'me'?"

"What do you think I mean?" Souji asked innocently, popping another cracker into his mouth, "I've been transferred a lot, Yosuke. It got so bad I made up a set of rules…'don't get involved, because it's not going to last'. You made me want to break my own rule, man." He smirked playfully, tossing a penguin shaped cracker at Yosuke's mouth, which had once again fallen open. "I'm not coming onto you, if you're worried."

"It's not that," Yosuke sighed, tossing the cracker back at his best friend with a huff, "I just…I didn't think we were the same, like that. I sort of always thought-"

Souji cut him off, his voice friendly and genuine, "What did you expect? We're equals."

"Huh? I-I mean, yeah, but that doesn't mean…," Yosuke trailed off, but the silence that followed was hardly uncomfortable. The two friends grinned broadly at each other, a few giddy laughs escaping despite their best efforts.

"_Are you guys awake!?_" Chie's voice hissed from outside the tent, cutting through the embarrassing moment of Male Bonding like a sharp, feminine knife.

"Huh!? Oh, you've got to be kidding me…," Yosuke groaned, burying his face in his hands to hide his blush. Souji only snorted in a decidedly undignified, unleaderly way -- the sort of laugh only Yosuke got the privilege of seeing. That made the brunette smile, despite the intrusion.

"Guess the whole manly sleepover thing is out he window, huh?" Yosuke whispered, his smirk edged with disappointment.

"Looks like it," Souji whispered back, hoisting himself up from his sitting position before pausing briefly and looking down at his best friend, "How's next Saturday sound?"

Yosuke didn't say anything, color attacking his cheeks while Chie and Yukiko panicked over the rapid approach of their tipsy homeroom teacher. The urgency in their voices made Souji not wait for an answer from Yosuke, unzipping the tent and pulling the girls inside without as second thought. As the night progressed in it's tense, awkward, uncomfortable way, Souji's question remained unanswered but had been nowhere near forgotten.

The light was out, their duffels stacked artfully into a makeshift wall, and Yosuke was having a hell of a time searching through his pack without toppling their teetering structure. Finally pulling out a small notebook and a golf pencil, he scribbled out a hasty message and shoved it into the hands of his dozing partner.

Souji awoke from his thin dream with a start, looking down dazedly at he crumpled note in his hands.

_saturday's awesome but you gotta help me out w/restocking or I'll be working until 10_

Souji stole the pencil from his friend, writing a reply in noticeably less hurried scrawl.

_Sounds good. But what's with the notes?_

_stealth!!!! and cool_

_You're dumb sometimes._

_whatever, you are too. now move. the topsicles are going to your ass and I've got no room to breathe_

Souji snorted again, which only made Yosuke start to giggle from behind his clasped hand. By some miracle, Chie and Yukiko didn't hear a thing.


	4. August 12, 2011: Stuck

From here on out there will be occasional traces of Yosuke/Chie. Just thought I'd mention, in case that pairing made some of you violently angry. XD

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**August 12, 2011**

How could he? How could he sit there and laugh? What had she done to deserve this? She'd done _nothing_ that's what and now and now this bastard was just going to walk all over Senpai's memory and for what just so he could--

"Dude…The cops."

"…Huh?"

Yosuke blinked hard, finally noticing how everyone around was staring. How much of his confusing jumble of thoughts had he actually voiced? And why the hell was there a hot trickle of wetness running down his face? He wasn't sad, he was _pissed_. Or at least he had been. Kanji's firm tone had brought him back to reality, draining Yosuke's body of the tense energy rage had given him. With that gone, it was all the brunette could do to keep his legs from giving out underneath him.

"What're you waitin' for!? Call the damn police!"

Yosuke was too numb to call his kohai on the sharpness of his words. Sniffing, he stuttered out a few words of agreement lamely before wiping his eyes raggedly with the back of his hand. He could hear Chie whisper his name softly, holding out her hand to try and give the boy a small semblance of comfort, but Yosuke ignored her. Chie was his present and, maybe, his future -- but that wasn't what was on his mind right now. _His_ mind was stuck quite firmly in his past as he turned on his heel and raced for the privacy of the employee bathroom. He could hear Chie call his name, louder this time, but he didn't around, even as he called back some garbled excuse about going to find a phone. The weight of his cellphone in his pocket seemed to get heavier the further he got from his friends.

And now he was alone, sitting on the toilet with his forehead pressed against the cool tile while he sobbed; crying for a girl who could've cared less about him while alive. Or at least that's what her Shadow had said; her resentment magnified as if by the sun at dusk. But he could never ask her about them. He could never ask what the context of those words were or if there were layers to them the Shadow's disembodied voice had left out. He could never ask because she would never be there to answer.

After fifteen minutes, a knock came on the door, prompting Yosuke to grit his teeth out of embarrassment for the state he was in and irritation over being disturbed.

"_Go away_, Chie!"

There was a pause, then a quiet, familiar voice drifted through the florescent orange fiberglass door.

"It's not Chie. Let me in." Yosuke's nails bit into his skin as he clenched his fists tighter.

"Leave me the fuck alone, Souji. This isn't the TV, you can't just order me around!"

"I'm not going anywhere." There a long pause after that, followed by the sound of returning footsteps and a soft clink of metal, then the rusted click of a lock, and then Souji was suddenly there, closing the door behind him. Yosuke could see the blurred gray outline of his friend through his periphery but refused to turn his head and give his intruding best friend the dignity of acknowledging his existence.

"Yosuke…"

He sounded like Chie, Yosuke noticed absently as the reminder of his female friend threatened to send more tears running down his face.

"_Yosuke_," his partner repeated firmly, though the care and concern never left his features. _Now_, Yosuke thought, now he sounded like Souji.

"What?" the brunette replied with a forced, watery chuckle, "This isn't anything you haven't seen before. Why the long face? Would you prefer I do this?" Yosuke plastered a wide, bright, empty smile over his face. It was convincing and Yosuke knew it; he'd been faking smiles his whole life. What he didn't know was how his red rimmed eyes, tearstained cheeks, and impossibly runny nose only succeeded in making a mockery of his carefully honed mask.

Souji stepped closer to the other boy, a movement that finally prompted Yosuke to really _look_ at his friend for the first time since he'd so rudely barged in. Souji was still moving ever closer, silent as the grave, which only made Yosuke nervous. And, as he often did when nervous, the brunette began to talk; narrating Souji's wordless actions with a voice that carried traces of hysteria amidst the lingering crackle of tears.

"What are you--oh, God, Souji, don't kneel on the floor! Do you know what I've seen on this floor? Horrors, man, pure horrors…oh, shit, you are _not_ doing this again, man, no way in hell-" Yosuke's voice finally broke in the same moment that Souji's arms coiled around him; enveloping him in a tight hug. They must've been a pathetic sight, Yosuke mused in that same odd, removed way. Souji was ruining his uniform pants on the grotesque (and probably sticky, Yosuke cringed inwardly) floor while Yosuke sat perched on top of the toilet, bawling and clinging to his best friend for dear life. Souji stayed silent throughout, no soft shushes or urges to calm down ever leaving his lips, even as Yosuke sobbed Saki's (and, in a burst of confusion, Chie's) name into his shoulder.

Neither of them knew how much time passed when Yosuke finally pushed Souji away, wiping at his eyes with embarrassment. Souji stayed in quiet, reassuring silence while Yosuke stood up, washed his face, and allowed his friend to lead him shakily out of the bathroom. Everyone else was gone, including Mitsuo and the police.

"Looks like they forgot about us, partner," Yosuke laughed, voice hoarse from crying.

"Pah, like anyone could forget the dynamic duo of Transfer Student & the faithful Junes Boy." Yosuke looked up, shooting him a general look of 'what the hell is wrong with you'. Souji was grinning and, without realizing, the brunette was soon following suit.

"You're a weird guy, Seta."

"Thanks, Hanamura."

There was a long, pleasant, amicable silence while the two friends walked towards the entrance of the deserted mall.

"So," Yosuke finally asked, wiping his nose though his voice was free of tears, "Why the hell do I have to be the sidekick?" Souji merely grinned, tousling his best friends hair.


	5. December 3, 2011: Watermelon Cough Drops

**December 3, 2011**

Yosuke paced darkly along the corridor of the pediatric ward, eyes fixed on his shoes. The sound of shouts and venom-filled words still rang in his ears, stinging him with their memory. He'd opted not to go back to Nanako's room with the others just yet. His ire had been calmed for now but he knew that one look at the poor first grader's blank face would send him back into fits of rage. Namatame would have no chance and Yosuke? Yosuke would be a murderer.

Why didn't the thought of that horrify him as much as it should? Why was he almost _receptive_ of the idea? Had the TV world and the murders really blurred his sense of morality that much? Was the slightest provocation all it took to turn him from good to evil? Hell, was any of it even that black and white in the first place?

Yosuke swallowed hard, willing his racing thoughts to stop. It was too many questions and too much to think about. When he got this way, the job of calming him down was always passed to _him_. To Souji.

Souji; who had looked at him with such disgust, his usually stoic face twisted into a foul grimace. His eyes had been red rimmed, cheeks shining with tears, when his best friend had finally abandoned his calm. He'd roared at him, voice cracking and exhausted but no less full of hatred.

But it hadn't been for Namatame or for a God or for any of the other people Yosuke had personally laid blame upon . It was all for him.

_"Calm the hell down!"_

_"Souji, I-!"_

_"Just shut up! Goddamnit, shut up, shut up, **shut up**!"_

_Namatame shuddered. The others remained still. Yosuke simply stood, face white, knees weak; absolutely shocked. And then Souji muttered something under his breath that made his grief fueled ire come to a grinding halt._

_"I hate this."_

Things had calmed down after that and the boys had offered each other mumbled apologies while they filed out of the dark hospital room, only to split off from the group and head in different directions of the hospital. The others had let them go without question.

"Fuck am I doing?" Yosuke groaned, sinking down onto an uncomfortable vinyl chair, hands raking through his hair and cradling his forehead. Rage had been replaced by guilt. He'd screamed at his best friend just as his entire family was dying around him. He deserved everything he got-

"Yosuke?"

The voice was tentative, quiet, and surprised. Looking up quickly, Yosuke saw a familiar figure poised at the end of the hall, staring at him. He looked as if he'd been passing by, frozen in midstep by the sight of his best friend.

"Souji," Yosuke mumbled, voice thick with shame as he averted his eyes, "H-hey."

"What are you doing?" Souji's tone was soft and glowed with genuine curiosity and concern. The brunette could only close his eyes bitterly at the sound. He wished he was still angry; it made everything a lot easier.

"Sitting."

"Oh." A pause. "Could I join you? Or is it not a group activity?"

Yosuke scowled, no trace of amusement in his face.

"Sure, fine."

Souji moved with slow, measured steps over to Yosuke and sunk down next to him silently. The silence persisted for a few more minutes, neither boy daring to speak first and break it. Souji's will was stronger, however, and in the end it was Yosuke who spoke up first.

"Have you gone to see Nanako yet?"

Souji's features tightened, a look of stricken pain crossing his face for the briefest of moments. Yosuke caught it. It made his chest hurt.

"Not yet. You?"

"Me neither."

The silence returned, this time broken up by the short, gasping breaths Yosuke could hear slipping between his best friend's lips. Turning his head just barely, Yosuke could see how his friends face was shining with fresh tears and snot and sweat. He looked terrible and all Yosuke could think about was how he'd shouted at him; accused him of not caring about his cousin at all. Suddenly, as if a valve had been opened inside his brain, Yosuke couldn't stop the words that tumbled from his mouth if he wanted to.

"Fuck. Fuck, man, I'm so sorry!" He threw an arm around Souji's shoulders, nearly jerking it back when he felt his friend tense up at the contact, "I was so stupid, Souji, I thought…I thought I could fix everything if I just erased him. I was impatient and stupid and I hated that we'd failed and I just wanted to…to _fix it_. I wanted to fix it for _you_ and all I did…all I did…"

"All you did," Souji repeated, voice hoarse and broken in a way Yosuke had never heard coming from his best friend, "Was react the way anyone would have."

"Not you-" Yosuke began to counter before Souji suddenly cut him off, voice sharp and focused.

"_Yes, me_. I wanted him dead. I wanted to be the one to do it. Even though I knew it was wrong and while I tried to convince you, I wanted to kill him, Yosuke." Souji heaved a huge, heavy sigh, wiping at his eyes hastily, "Everyone in that room felt that way…the only difference between us and him was that deep down, we knew it was wrong."

"Yeah, but I-"

"You did too, Yosuke. If you thought it was right, nothing I could've said would've backed you down. _Nothing_."

Yosuke stayed quiet for a long time while Souji continued to wipe his face on his sleeve messily. When he drew his face away from his uniform, Yosuke could see that he had rubbed himself raw. Reaching into his pocket, the brunette felt anxiously around in his pocket for a tissue. His search came up empty, save for the crinkle of plastic against his fingertips. Drawing the package out, Yosuke was greeted by a cheery watermelon announcing the name of his favorite brand of cough drops.

Yosuke bit his lip. They'd been Nanako's favorite too.

Choosing not to linger on that thought, Yosuke thrust a hand into the bag and pulled out two of the paper-wrapped candies. Keeping one for himself, the brunette dropped the other in his friends open palm. Souji didn't react, letting the candy roll off his hand and fall to the floor with a hollow clacking. With surprising patience, Yosuke reached down and picked it up, putting it back in Souji's hand. Though, this time, he made sure to force his best friend's fingers to close around it.

"I know it's not much," he admitted, "But you haven't eaten anything all day and I-" Souji shifted slightly, the cough drop starting to fall loose from his grip for the second time. Moving preemptively, Yosuke took it from him and sighed softly while his fingers fumbled with the wrappings.

"You like these," he urged with a gentle reminder, holding up the small red oval as it refracted the sickly glow of the hospital lights. Souji continued to stare down at his shoes silently. "C'mon, bro, take it. I'm not going to put it in your mouth for you. You don't need me to do that."

Something about the quiet sternness of Yosuke's voice resonated with Souji and, though slow, his hand gradually took the candy from Yosuke and brought it to his dry lips. Yosuke quickly unwrapped his own, following suit. The two sat there for a while, sucking on their cough drops in silence. They tasted like last summer and bike rides and promises to visit the beach _next_ year. And it hurt, remembering. It hurt for both of them. Still, as the sweet lozenges dissolved and mingled with their saliva, both boys found comfort in the taste. And in each other.

Later, there would be tears of a different kind. Happy tears and hugging and smiles. But for now, in the deserted hospital corridor, Yosuke and Souji had everything they needed.


	6. March 20, 2011: Rooftops

**March 20, 2012**

There were dark circles under his eyes. He couldn't see them, but he could feel them. Swollen with an exhaustion that was both unearthly and distant, Yosuke pressed a hand do his face tentatively. He was cold. And when Chie slipped her hand into his, he realized she was cold too.

It was almost as if the curse still had it's grip on them. A gauzy haze that softened the edges of the electronics department and muted the obnoxious colors, advertisements, and notifications that covered the walls of Junes enveloped Yosuke's mind with a softness that felt like cotton.

With a distant, bleary noise of realization, Yosuke wondered exactly _how_ long it took someone to come back from the dead.

Chie's hand was firmer now and warmer around the palm, though her fingertips were still frigid. Yosuke brought them between his own hands and rubbed gently, instinctively trying to warm her with the friction. She didn't protest like usual. In fact, she leaned against him as they shared a very, very rare moment of silence. She seemed content to press her face against his gakuran, reminding him distantly of a small child curling into a friend or parent. Yosuke wrapped an arm around her but, for once, didn't comment on it.

Instead, Yosuke watched the others.

Rise was all smiles, cheeks flushed while her hair bounced along with the rest of her. Out of everyone, she looked the most alive. Yosuke hadn't asked her what happened after they were all gone, or if Izanami had cursed her as well, but even if she had Yosuke wouldn't have been that surprised by Rise's bubbly enthusiasm. It helped considerably, actually, and Yosuke felt a grin tugging at his lips when she tugged off Naoto's hat and twirled it around her finger with the smug glow of a cat who'd caught the canary. Naoto huffed, trying to reach for it, but a game of keep away had already begun. Kanji eventually took pity on the detective and reached down, plucking the hat easily from the idol's grip before tugging it snugly over the small first year's head. He was rewarded with a glare for pushing her bangs into her face (along with a small peck once she thought no one was looking; Yosuke was, unfortunately for her).

There was the sound of laughter directly to his right and as he turned, Yosuke was surprised to see that Chie had removed herself from his jacket. She was grinning, a look of relief and pride lighting up her eyes in a way that made Yosuke's stomach flip nervously. Yukiko was next to her, her own distinctive snorting coloring their conversation. Yosuke, himself, couldn't pick up exactly what they were saying; his mind was still trapped in the odd, gossamer vertigo between living and dying. The others seemed to have snapped out of it, which made sense, when you thought about it.

After all, he had been the first to go.

* * *

_"Chie, her left's exposed! Right th-**yes, there!**"_

_A 'huttah' that was barely audible above the wrenching and creaking of dead limbs sounded before a roar of pain. It had been a strong attack, clearly, as the blade of her shoe slid out easily from where it had imbedded in a the monster's side. Dodging a flurry of retaliating clawed arms, Chie returned to her position to Souji's right. With a small nod to her leader that she was alright, Souji took his cue and fell into stance. Summoning a tarot from the mist, he let the warm card rest in his palm for a moment before clenching his fist around it. The card shattered, shards imbedding themselves into his palm. The pain only lasted a moment, however, before a warm blue flame ran up his arm. Even though Yosuke had seen it a thousand times or more, the sight never stopped fascinating him. There was a grace and efficiency to the gesture that Yosuke's own acrobatics lacked, considerably. And it went without saying that the few seconds before a figure appeared above his best friend's head were always exciting ones. You never could tell what was going to appear._

_Although, when Izanagi's swirling form appeared over Souji's head, no one watching was particularly surprised._

_The beast screamed again, her voice aching with hatred and longing. The attack connected, sending powerful shocks of electricity through the goddess's body. Yosuke could feel his hair floating upwards from the lingering static when Souji gave him a nod and silently urged him to attack. Yosuke raised his daggers, getting as far as procuring his own card -- the blue hued Magician -- from the fog when Izanami let out another gurgle of rage from her rotted throat._

_"Wait, no, Yosuke, stop! Guard! Everyone, guard!" Souji voice was higher than usual, prompting Yukiko to take a step closer and check to see if their leader had been struck by fear. Souji only roared at her, jumping back sharply, "Get the hell away from me, Yukiko, **now**!"_

_Stunned, the girl obeyed. A current of confusion ran through the group, all staring at Souji with concern and panic as their leader stood still, staring at the writhing goddess. Out of all of them, only Yosuke knew that look. It was distant, searching, and strained with mental exertion. He and Izanagi were conversing. But there was something new this time too. His best friend's eyes were glassy while his mouth formed a tight, firm line. The hand that gripped his sword was shaking._

_What was Izanagi telling him?_

_"Goodbye...accept the reality of your death."_

_Yosuke's head snapped to the goddess, then back to Souji. To his surprise, Souji was staring back at him, mouthing something. Yosuke was terrible at reading lips, but he could make out part of it._

_'Lead them and win this for me, alright?'_

_Yosuke's eyes widened as a black spot slowly started growing beneath Souji's feet like a bruise._

_"W-wait! Partner!"_

_Swirling red hands drew out of it, gripping and tearing at Souji's shirt, scratching at his face, nearly knocking his glasses askew._

_Yosuke moved without thinking, barreling towards his friend while he set his face in a mask of grim determination. This bitch wasn't taking his best friend; not for anything in the world. Voice hoarse and thick with resolve, he shouted at the deity roughly._

_"Not a chance!"_

_Shouldering Souji hard in the side, the grip of the hands weakened and released him. Yosuke let out a sigh of relief, moving to grab his best friend by the collar and run through the forest of arms unscathed._

_That was when he felt the icy grip of a hand wrapping around his ankle. He tripped, falling to his knees as he tried frantically to free himself. Slashing at the arm with his knives was useless -- for all their strength, they had no real form to connect with. Panic gripped his chest, but it was a new kind of panic. It came along with a realization that he felt had been forced upon him. A hand grabbed a fistful of his hair, dragging him back in the center of the black circle of limbs._

_"Y-Yosuke!"_

_Souji was staring at him from where he sat on his knees, dazed from the rough shove. The fight he had been battling with tears was lost and they were running silent and clear down his face. Yosuke couldn't feel much anymore; everything was either numb or ice cold. But he managed a smile and a wink, almost as if to say, 'What the hell are you crying about, you idiot? We still on for Okina next Saturday?'_

_The last things he heard was Souji choking out a sob, followed by Chie screaming and Kanji swearing up a storm. Then the icy chill of the hands gave way to warmth. Yosuke sank without struggle._

* * *

"Yosuke?" Chie's voice chimed, cheerful and glowing with accomplishment. She wasn't cold anymore, the life and vibrancy of her presence warming Yosuke's own chilled body, "Yukiko and me are going to go to her place to clean up. Do you want to come?"

Yosuke could tell it was a courtesy invite from the way she and Yukiko exchanged glances. Under normal circumstances, he would've been offended (_weren't they supposed to be dating?_), but today he merely smiled, pressed a kiss to her forehead, and shooed her along. Chie swatted him at the burst of affection while Yukiko giggled and flushed.

The two girls linked arms, waving to those that remained. Naoto and Kanji left shortly after, hands brushing very, very lightly as they walked. Soon, it was just he, Teddie, Rise, and Souji who remained.

"Yosuke!" Teddie whined, tearing off the head of his bear suit, "I wanna go home! It's curry night!" Somehow, the thought of eating anything makes Yosuke's stomach lurch.

"I'll meet up with you later, Ted. I think I'm going to stay here for a little longer."

Teddie nodded enthusiastically, clearly already tantalized by the prospect of more curry for him. Yosuke gave him a small wave as the bear scampered excitedly down the aisle as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. His world was safe now and, for whatever reason, it is that moment that the magnitude of their achievement. They were heroes. _He_ was a hero. That's what he wanted all this time, right?

He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Rise had her arms wrapped around Souji's neck, whispering something to him. Out of respect, Yosuke looked away, fiddling idly with his headphone cord while he waited for them to finish…whatever it was they were doing. It wasn't long before he heard a wet smack of lips, followed by a small, tearful, "Come home with me. Just this once, _please_."

There was a pregnant pause, followed by something that surprised.

"I can't. But I'll see you tomorrow, alright? Promise."

He turned to look at them upon hearing that, surprised. Rise punched Souji lightly in the arm, forcing out a watery laugh as she made him promise a second time. Then, with a soft click of kitten heels, she was gone. And it was just them, just like the beginning. The fifteenth of April.

It seemed like forever ago.

"This is a familiar setup," Souji smiled, amusement in his voice as he leaned against a cell phone display, "I can remember a time not long ago when two brave youths traversed into the unknown for justice and glory; just them, their iron will, and one golf club between them."

"Nice tagline, dork," Yosuke grinned, the warmth returning to his chest at the memory, "You're hanging around with Teddie too much."

"Well, can you blame me? I'm not going to be getting many spontaneous haikus after tomorrow." The words sting, even though Yosuke knows they weren't meant to. Souji seems to pick up on that, but then again, of course he would. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" the brunette shoots back, making a point to shrug his shoulders in the most carefree way possible, "It's not like we didn't know it was coming. And it's like I said back there -- no regrets now, right?" Souji stared at him for a long moment, which would've been awkward had Souji not backed out of it at just he right moment.

"Right."

The boys fell into silence again and Yosuke took the moment to check his phone. It was late, nearly eight o'clock, and there were a few missed calls from his mother. Teddie would take care of that, though, and Yosuke flipped his phone shut. Pocketing it, he took the opportunity to break the quiet they'd fallen into.

"Hey, did I ever…," he thought for a moment, suddenly grinning, "Nope, I would've remembered. C'mon, I want to show you something."

Souji looked up, his expression of deep thought giving way to bemused confusion, "Is it the two headed rat in the basement you keep talking about? Because I'm not interested."

"_No_," he scowled, though a mischievous expression quickly replaced his scorn, "…But come to think of it, you _haven't_ met Itachi yet…"

"I'll pass, thanks."

Yosuke grinned, clapping Souji on the shoulder as he passed him and made his way for the employee stairs, "Suit yourself."

The two boys climbed the deserted stairwell together while Yosuke gave the rundown of Recent Junes News. They were getting a new coffee machine for the break room and Yosuke was _inches_ from securing a raise; something that was rather difficult to achieve when your father was in charge of payroll. The people he was competing with for a pay bump didn't get penalized for coming home past curfew, after all.

Souji would laugh at all the right parts of Yosuke's rambling, but the brunette could tell his heart wasn't in it. Giving the gray haired boy a few sidelong glances while he fumbled around in his pocket, Yosuke gave a short victorious cry as he pulled out a small brass key. With much fanfare and a waggle of the eyebrows (_That made Souji laugh more genuinely_, Yosuke mentally applauded himself), the key was inserted into the lock and the door thrown open.

It was a roof. Souji looked a little confused, voicing his thoughts.

"It's the roof."

"Huh?" Yosuke asked, frowning at his friend's lack of enthusiasm for something so _obviously_ spectacular. The surface was covered with an inch and a half of gravel, which flew up and got into your sneakers if you kicked at it the wrong way. There was a large chimney and a room-sized box with electrical warnings plastered to the sides. Slightly more striking were the tall, tree-like power lines that ran parallel to the street below. In the light of the sinking sun, the scenery took on a sepia tone, almost like an old photograph. Yosuke sighed, allowing the nostalgia to wash over him uninhibited.

"Is this what you wanted to show me…?" Souji asked, confusion still coloring his words.

"Yep!" Yosuke was enthusiastic, walking out from the doorframe and into the heatless rays of the sun. There was a chill in the air, but Yosuke found it bracing. Something about it was distinctly _alive_, not like the deathly chill that still gripped him in the legs and stomach, "Isn't it great? Man, this place brings back memories. I haven't been up here since…last April, I think. Maybe May. It was a long time ago."

It wasn't long before the comfortable, familiar presence of his best friend joined him. Souji was silent for a while, his effort to absorb Yosuke's words in conjunction with the setting tangible.

"You know what it reminds me of? The-"

"-The overlook, yeah." Yosuke smiled, flushing a little at his presumption to finish Souji's sentence for him. The look his best friend gave him, however, hardly seemed annoyed. "I don't think I got that until much later, though. I guess it was because I hated the overlook so much and this place…it was great. No one ever comes up here, y'know?" Yosuke kicked at the gravel, watching it spray over the edge of the building and clatter down to the ground with a satisfying shower of 'plick's.

"Oh yeah?" Souji asked, the start of a small knowing smile playing across his lips.

"Yeah, it was…it was nice, especially when people started getting on my back about my responsibilities and how I was part of the 'fall of Inaba' or some shit. I didn't have to mind my manners up here. I could watch the part timers from up here -- you know the two I mean -- and curse them out without them hearing." He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck with a touch of embarrassment. Souji didn't react with disappointment or disapproval over his childish past behavior. After all, he'd seen all that pentup rage first hand. Who knew something Yosuke thought would be so horrifying while it happened could turn into one of his greatest comforts?

"Sounds nice," Souji nodded, moving to sit down cross-legged on the gravel. Yosuke followed suit. "Why'd you stop coming?"

"Busy, man, _busy_," Yosuke laughed, brushing his hair from his eyes, "We got involved in the cases and from then on there was always somewhere to go or something more I could be doing. And I didn't have to talk to myself anymore."

"Oh?" Souji asked, voice casually curious.

"Yeah, dude, I had you," Yosuke was flushing a little at the admission, but soldiered on admirably, "You're a better listener than gravel, y'know? And you talk back. Even if you can say some weird shit sometimes."

Souji chuckled softly, smiling widely and leaning back on his palms to look at the sun. Yosuke caught the smile, returning it with his own bright grin before falling into a similar pose.

"I guess everyone needs a special place at some time or other," Yosuke mused, picking up a fistfuls of gravel before letting them drop slowly from his lightly closed fist, "Dontcha think?"

"I haven't met anyone who's never had one, so…"

"What about you?" the words fell past Yosuke's mouth before he had a chance to stop them, but even then he felt little remorse for the question. Souji was a private person but this was _him_. The fond expression on Souji's face as he looked over the town only reassured that.

"Well," Souji began, "It's going to sound weird, but, this. Right here."

"My roof!?" Yosuke asked, shocked and a little possessive.

"Yeah," Souji confirmed, earning a disapproving pout from Yosuke. Souji only laughed. "Let me finish. It's not just 'your' roof, okay? It's all of this. This whole town, y'know? I…I'm different here. I've never felt as open to be myself when I'm with you guys or home with Nanako or anywhere, really. Just so long as it's here."

Yosuke stared at him for a long time, processing what Souji had just shared with him. It didn't make much sense when he first considered it -- after all, an entire town a 'special place'? That didn't seem possible. But the more he thought about it, the more he could see Souji's reasoning. Here he was a leader, a hero, a star student, and a _best friend_. He wouldn't stop being all those things once he left tomorrow, but would be different. Yosuke's mind didn't sugar coat that part and neither had Souji's.

"That doesn't sound weird. It makes a lot of sense, actually. I think Inaba's probably special to all of us by now…I mean, we nearly died saving it. It's like we're a part of this place now." Yosuke allowed his words to trail off naturally, leaning on his palm as the sun set further. "You're going to be taking part of it with you when you go, though, dude."

"Am I?" Souji said, voice distant and…hopeful? The tone was a little jarring.

"_Of course_," Yosuke asserted vehemently, "A really good part, too. I'm…I'm, uh…" There was the audible sound of Yosuke swallowing, "I'm going to miss it a lot. It's my favorite part, I think."

Souji was beaming. Yosuke noted that this one was very, very genuine. The chill went out of him instantly, rushing out of him like rain through a gutter. It was nice.

"Get up," Souji said suddenly, rising to his feet with a scrape of gravel. Yosuke looked up at him quizzically, half wondering if they were going to fight again. Before he got a chance to question his friend, however, he found himself being pulled up by the wrist.

"Souji, what are you-"

"You said that no one could hear what you said while you were up here, right?"

"Uh, yeah, but-"

Yosuke didn't get a chance to finish his protest when Souji cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "_THANK YOU INABA!_" at the top of his voice. Yosuke's mouth fell slack.

"D-dude, what are you _doing_!?"

Souji's grin was easy now, cheeks pink from invigorated shouting, "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm giving Inaba a proper goodbye." Before Yosuke could answer, Souji's hands were back around his mouth, yelling again, "_THANK YOUUUU!_"

"Stop it, you freaking weirdo!!" Yosuke was blushing furiously, embarrassed for reasons he couldn't really place. Maybe because in all their months of close, close friendship he'd never, ever, _ever_ seen Souji let go like this. Had the final showdown with Izanami made him snap or something?

"You try, Yosuke," Souji grinned, breathing hard, "You said you were going to miss a part of Inaba too. Your 'favorite'." Yosuke blushed redder, if possible.

"I can't believe I'm…fuck," Yosuke cupped his mouth with his hands, shouting halfheartedly, "Yay for Inaba~." Souji looked at him quizzically.

"That was awful."

"Shut up!"

"No, really, that was pathetic. I'm sorry, I wouldn't have asked you if I knew you were going to embarrass yourself like that."

Souji was keeping a straight face as best he could, but the corners of his mouth twitched upwards just slightly. Yosuke was scowling too deeply to notice.

"Oh _yeah_?" Yosuke challenged, hackles raised in defiance. Bracing himself dramatically, he leaned forward as if providing added reach to his shout, "_HEY INABA, SOUJI SETA LIKES TO SUCK-_" Inaba never got to find out what Souji Seta liked to suck. The Souji Seta in question had tackled Yosuke to the ground with a peal of defiant laughter. They wrestled for a bit, insults occasionally being screamed conversationally to Inaba before the other would throw gravel in their face. At one point, Souji stole Yosuke's headphones and player, racing around the roof with them while he screamed off the names of Yosuke's most embarrassing artists ("_YO, INABA, DID YOU KNOW YOSUKE HANAMURA HAS A THING FOR MILEY-**ow**!_") while the red faced brunette followed him hot pursuit. A few concerned residents dialed the police once it got dark and the noise persisted, but they were met with a shrug and a promise to send a squad car once their officers were through with the processing of a very important criminal. None ever came.

Meanwhile, Souji and Yosuke laughed until all the tears that had been building up since that afternoon had been shed. And as they parted ways late into the night, with a hug that neither of them protested to, neither boy could think of a better way to cry.

* * *

This is the last chapter I have written, as well as the end of Part I, but there should be more coming.


	7. December 20, 2013: Defining

Sorry for the lengthy delay! I got caught up with a multitude of other stories (many of which sadly aren't quite fit for this site) and took a break from this. If you'd like to check out some of my other stories (and my art), I have a fanfiction journal here: w w w . community . livejournal . com / bedsafe_fanwork (remove spaces, natch)

* * *

**December 20th, 2013**

There were some tortures in life you couldn't avoid. Dentist visits, awkward lunches with distant relatives, those big bugs that buzzed around your window (and occasionally _got in_). Yosuke knew that. He _accepted_ that. Still, as another piercing clink of porcelain knocking together rang out through the room, Yosuke had to wonder if 'rooming with your best friend' was among those required sufferings.

Something told him it wasn't.

With a dramatic puff of air, Yosuke rolled onto his side, putting on a grand show of restlessness for his friend on the opposite side of the room. Souji was either unimpressed or simply engrossed in his book, as all he did was take another sip of tea and turn the pages of The Princely Way. Otherwise known as the noisiest book in existence.

"Souji," he finally groaned into his pillow, "It's late. Go to bed."

His best friend responded with another scraping, insufferable turn of the page.

"In a bit," he mumbled, after a pause that went long enough to make Yosuke lose what little was left of his sanity, "I just want to finish this chapter."

"Rocks fall, everyone dies. The end. Go to sleep." Yosuke once again turned violently in his small bed, jerking the sheets so hard they lifted from the cheap mattress and wound themselves around his person. Souji snickered.

"Sorry," he smiled, closing his book and flicking off the small lamp he'd been reading with. Yosuke made a noise of over exaggerated relief and triumph while Souji rolled his eyes into the darkness, positioning his pillow comfortably beneath his head. Within seconds, the two boys were surrounded by the silence of their small, unimpressive dorm.

As usual, however, that silence was fleeting.

"Fuck," Yosuke groaned, drawing out the word until it became a barely decipherable trail of high pitched whining, "Now I can't sleep."

"Count sheep," Souji suggested unhelpfully, earning a frustrated sigh from his friend, "What?"

"This is your fault."

"Right."

"I mean it, Souji! First I find you digging weird crap out of the fridge, now you're reading trashy self-help books in the middle of the night, who the hell knows what you'll do while I'm asleep!" Yosuke propped himself up against the stark white walls of their dorm, "You're giving me a complex, Souji, I'm serious."

"Mm. I wonder what might happen if you put as much time into classes as you do to study my habits," Souji drawled, leaning heavily on his elbow as he picked at a small wrinkle on the sheets, "Maybe your Dad would send money instead of angry letters."

"I'd have to change my major before that would happen," the brunette grumbled, forgetting his anger for a moment in light of an opportunity to pick at his favorite topic. Namely, Why His Father Was Such An Enormous Jerk. "I got another email from him today. I swear, this thing would win awards for most prevalent usage of the caps lock key."

"Still on you about becoming a businessman?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Yosuke grumbled, earning a knowing nod from his best friend, "I think he might pull my tuition soon, but whatever." An awkward laugh penetrated the darkness, hitching slightly like it often did when Yosuke put on his Customer Service Face. He'd never lost it, even after leaving Junes. It made Souji just as uncomfortable now as it did then, even when only the barest outline of white teeth were visible in the shadowed room. "College life never suited me, anyway. And you can find a new roommate to annoy the shit out of!"

"You're not going anywhere," Souji stated simply, voice taking on neither hesitant reassurance nor gripping conviction. He said it in the same, matter-of fact voice he used when relaying the weather report or commenting on the state of the shower on their floor. Assured, unflustered, and confident.

It was comforting, and before too long Yosuke was smiling faintly into the dark room.

"Yeah, I know, I'm just kidding," he relented, "Like you'd find someone else to put up with you!"

"Mhm," Souji nodded, a slight smile playing across his lips. If Yosuke could see it, he'd probably be blushing and blustering about how _he really didn't need to be looked after, Souji, he's not one of his daycare kids!_ But the lamp was off, and he was spared the defiant rant for now. Besides, Yosuke's protests were always inconsequential in the end. Both of them knew Yosuke did need looking after. Souji needed it too, albeit in a different way.

They kept each other sane, filling the gaps in each others personalities with their starkly different habits. Outwardly, many people on campus wondered why on earth cool, charming Seta-kun was joined at the hip with a dorky country boy. When asked this question directly, Souji always gave the same answer.

_"He's my best friend," he would force past a tight, controlled smile, "Any other reasons are none of your business."_

The rumors of them being partners in a deeper sense started fairly soon after their fourth month at school. Souji could understand the impulse to assign a name to he and Yosuke's admittedly bizarre relationship. Calling them 'best friends', as the two of them so often did, seemed inadequate even to _them_. Watching the two of them bustle around their dorm painted a convincing picture of marriage. Yosuke was a nag, through and through, complaining petulantly about anything and everything. Souji was known to shut him up with a joking kiss to the forehead, which left the brunette flailing and sputtering for a good fifteen minutes. When they relaxed together, played video games, napped, they would occasionally share the same bed. Once, Souji had even been seen winding his fingers through Yosuke's hair as he slept.

It was very easy to see why one might draw the conclusion that they had something more.

But for all the unique aspects of their friendship, the rumors were unfounded. As Yosuke would often spit angrily after another hopeful group of girls milked him for details or jealously opined that he was _soooo lucky_, they just didn't 'get it'.

"Chie's coming up in a few days," Yosuke mentioned abruptly, once again filling the dark room with his voice, "You know, so we can spend Christmas together and stuff."

"Ah," Souji nodded, biting back the urge to ask why they had both waited until now to tell him this, "That'll be nice."

"Yeah," Yosuke nodded in return, trying to stymie the awkwardness that had suddenly cropped up between them, "So, uh, the reason I mention it is…well, y'know, Christmas Eve and everything. Kinda a couples thing, so…" There was the audible sound of fingers drumming on their shared bedside table, "Could I take the room, man? I don't want to kick you out or anything, but…"

_But you **do** want to kick me out_, Souji internally supplied, "It's alright, Yosuke, I don't care. Far be it from me to get in the way of you getting laid."

"Thanks," his friend gushed, sounding genuinely appreciative and making Souji feel like more of an asshole for feeling bitter, "I owe you, partner. I would take her to a hotel, but money's tight and all-"

"Seriously," Souji interrupted, "It's cool. I'll go down to Inaba for a few days. I want to catch Nanako before she starts thinking magic tricks are lame."

"Yeah," Yosuke laughed, suddenly sounding a little odd, "Lemme guess, that's not the only reason."

"Huh?"

"Well," he continued, a devilish edge to his voice, "I hear Rise is going to be back home for Christmas~. You know how the song goes, don't you?" Souji winced, covering his ears with his pillow while Yosuke burst into a very broken English version of _I'll Be Home For Christmas_.

"I get it," Souji told him, trying to speak over the din, "Now shut up before we get another noise complaint." Yosuke did as he was told, although not without a few lewd snickers, once again bringing back the sweet quiet from before, "And I didn't even know Rise was going to be in Inaba."

"_Sure~._"

"I didn't," Souji repeated, voice edged with frustration, "We realized it wasn't going to work out a while ago. She's just a friend."

"Ah," Yosuke grinned, waggling his eyebrows needlessly, "So Yukiko, then."

"I wish you'd stop," Souji sighed, rolling onto his back, staring up at the thin crack that ran along the ceiling. It had gotten worse since they moved in. Absently, he mused on just how much time he had left before the bed in the room above them broke through and crushed him in his sleep. It would beat having _this_ conversation again.

"Stop what?" Yosuke asked, sounding genuinely clueless as he propped himself up on his elbow, "Stop trying to figure out who has captured the elusive but no less sought after Seta Heart?" A pause, followed by a wrinkling of the nose. "It's not Naoto, is it? Kanji'll have your ass."

"I'll make it easy for you, Teddie," Souji shot back, earning a small cry of protest from his friend, "No one. Not yet, anyway."

"Whatever," Yosuke laughed, finally accepting defeat as he brought his thin blanket up around his shoulders, "But when you find her, tell me, because I fucking hate guessing games."

"Sure thing, Yosuke," he nodded, letting his lips curve upward slightly, "Go to bed."

"Way ahead of you," his friend replied, accompanied by the barely visible flitting of a hand making an exaggerated salute. After a few minutes of silence and the occasional shifting of sheets, a high, thin snore filled the room. Souji's smile grew slightly, only to fall promptly when he realized that sleep was not coming to him as easily.

Instead, he stared up at the crack in the ceiling, mentally gauging how much plaster he would need to buy. He could probably stretch one of those little one pound bags a long way, if he had to. Yosuke wasn't the only one money was tight for, after all.

Souji sighed, letting his mind drift back to their conversation. It wasn't as if there weren't girls he had his eye on. There were, and Yosuke knew about most of them. They would talk about it over dinner, making jokes while Yosuke crafted mathematically incorrect odds on the likelihood of Souji actually hooking them. Realistically, Souji knew he probably wouldn't have to try very hard to get a date. Not as hard as some, anyway, he noted with a discreet look to the snoring lump in the other bed. But he found that, in the end, the will wasn't there.

When it came right down to it, Souji was happy with the way things were. After a life of constant flux, he had found a setup he enjoyed. He could look at all the girls he wanted and then come home to hang out with his best friend, who _knew_ what he liked and how to cheer him up and when to shut his mouth (at least most of the time). It would be so much easier if he _was_ gay. At least then he could figure out why the hell he got so jealous whenever Chie came around and he, once again, found himself being passed over.

When it came right down to it, Souji was a lot like the curious onlookers that lived on their floor. He wanted to put a name to what he and Yosuke had too.

As if on cue, Yosuke shifted in his sleep, muttering something about his music theory professor chasing him. Souji smiled, if only a little.

At least things hadn't changed just yet.

---

Thank you so much for all the lovely feedback! It makes me oh-so-happy. :D


	8. July 30, 2019: Of Matrimony and Books

**July 30th, 2019**

Yosuke felt exceedingly stupid.

His hair had been pressed down flat against his scalp, giving him the distinct air of a used car salesman. The tuxedo he'd been forced into, while _okay_, had obviously fallen on the wrong side of their budget. His awkwardly lanky form (another great source of frustration for him -- he was twenty-four, for God's sake!) forced the sleeves to hang higher than intended while too-narrow shoulders only emphasized the glaring tailoring error. The jacket was used and had obviously been hemmed and rehemmed multiple times by primarily unskilled hands, leaving Kanji unable to lengthen it properly without tripping over other stitching.

He looked like an overgrown child playing like he was an adult and there wasn't a single thing Yosuke could do about it.

His only consolation -- a single, solitary hope that _no one_ would look good in a suit like this -- was promptly shattered when a familiar figure slipped through the door to his room.

"You decent?" Souji asked, unnecessarily, while waltzing up to the mirror with a wide smile. Yosuke merely rolled his eyes at his best friend while tugging at the cuffs of his shirt, trying in vain to force everything to line up properly. He was forced to note, with considerable envy, that Souji looked fantastic in his lumpy thrift store tux.

Upstaged, even on his wedding day. Figures.

"Ha ha," he grumbled, not looking up at his friend beyond the initial cursory glance. Yosuke didn't even bother to censor the traces of bitterness bubbling up in his voice, "Didn't I ask you to go ask my father about-"

"Did it," Souji interrupted, smiling in that faint, strange way that put Yosuke a little on edge, "Got them right here." With minimal flourish, the ash-haired man pulled out a small box, turning it over carefully in his hands before flipping the top open. Two simple gold bands caught the light, shimmering ominously while Yosuke's stomach turned.

"You alright?" Souji asked, although the buzzing in Yosuke's skull made it sound like his friend was whispering through cotton. All the frazzled brunette could do was shake his head vaguely while Souji lowered him into one of the inn's overstuffed armchairs and made his way to the minibar.

"Do you want Second Maid or something a little stronger?" he asked, although after a beat he reached for the beer chilling near the back, despite Yosuke's lack of answer. They'd known each other long enough to have a handle on the other's favorite brand of tissue paper, let alone drink.

"Dude, don't…," he finished with a sigh, seeing the uselessness of his protest once the cool surface of the can was pressed into his hand. He popped the top, wiping some of the condensation on his hand off onto his pants, "I've got to pay for this now."

Souji sank down in the chair adjacent to Yosuke's, producing his wallet from inside his jacket. "Here," he smiled, holding out several hundred yen, "It's on me. Consider this my wedding present."

Yosuke scowled, but there was a faint note of amusement in his face -- one that gave way to a full on smile as he bat Souji's hand away and took a deep sip, "Nah, forget it. I have a feeling there's going to be a lot of eating out in my future. I should get used to overpriced drinks."

"Chie hasn't gotten any better then?" Souji frowned, faintly, "I offered to teach her, but she yelled me out of the kitchen."

"Just be thankful she's not catering this…'event'," Yosuke swallowed, unenthused air quotes held over his head in a feeble effort to minimize the step he was about to take, "She tried it, the first time our families met. I think my parents would have paid me not to marry her after that."

They shared a laugh, allowing a little nostalgia over what must have been the millionth mockery of Yosuke's wife-to-be's (that is, to-be-in-about-an-hour) culinary skills. Souji's voice still rang with laughter when he spoke, despite being markedly quieter, "And yet here you are."

Yosuke paused to adjust the cuff of his tuxedo for the hundredth time, "Weird, huh? I always thought…" He trailed off, hoping against hope they would lapse into a comfortable silence and he wouldn't have to finish his thought.

"Mm?" Souji murmured, curious but not invasively so. So much for silence.

"Oh, nothing serious, man," Yosuke dismissed by way of introduction, "It's just…I don't know, I figured you'd be in this suit instead of me." A pause. "I mean, not _this_ suit, but you get what I'm saying."

"You thought I would be marrying Chie?" Souji asked, with the barest hint of teasing in his voice. Normally Yosuke would have taken his cue to let the conversation devolve into banter, but something at the back of his mind made him ignore the bait.

"You know what I mean, though, right?"

Souji's smile dropped a moment, although it seemed more in response to Yosuke's directness than the question itself. Still, he paused, oozing thoughtfulness and consideration -- just like he always did. Yosuke had to look away, fiddling with a tassel on his arm rest.

"I guess I just haven't found the right person yet," he finally explained, despite not looking thoroughly convinced of that himself. Yosuke was about to voice his own skepticism (after all, how could someone who could feasibly take anyone they wanted have trouble "finding" someone?), when Souji cut him off with a belated afterthought, "No, that's not it. It's more like…" He stopped, smiled thinly, then chuckled.

Yosuke was all for being the patient listener (although he _was_ pretty new at it -- Souji had hogged all the experience in that department), but all the self control he had to spare couldn't prevent a curious, "…Like?" from leaving his lips. Souji didn't seem to mind, though. In fact, his smile grew a little.

"I don't want to get married," he finally shrugged, "Some people need it. I mean, I always knew you would get married someday--don't look so offended, it's really not a bad thing." Yosuke closed his mouth, letting half formed words of protest die on his lips while looking none too happy about it. "I doubt I would feel right marrying someone, anyway. I'm as good at getting people to love me as you are."

A soft silence hung in the air, broken only by the gentle scrape of a maid pulling her cart down the hall, and then it was Yosuke's turn to laugh. Small hitching giggles that turned into outright guffaws once Souji gave him permission with a smile. Several false starts and relapses into laughter later, Yosuke finally managed to speak semi-coherently, "You haven't been drinking _this_ early, have you?" Another laugh. "No! Wait, I got it, Chie kicked you in the head for stepping on her train!"

Souji was laughing now too, quieter but no less genuine, "Not quite."

"Seriously, though," Yosuke continued, finally leaving his giggles behind in favor of a large smile he just couldn't seem to shake, "I thought you were going to reveal some big secret about yourself or something, man!"

"You don't believe me, then?" Souji asked, sounding a little more knowing that Yosuke would have normally liked.

"Dude," Yosuke smiled, suddenly aware of just how much more comfortable he was now than he had been before Souji came in, "If that was true, you wouldn't have been a best man three times already. _Four_, counting this one."

"That's not quite what I mean," he chuckled, examining his cuticles critically, "It's complicated. And you've got a wedding you're going to be late for."

Yosuke's smile waned just slightly as he watched Souji stand, dusting off his heinous suit (what had Chie's mother been _thinking_?) in his delightfully familiar, fussy way. Years ago, he might have pressed further, said 'fuck the wedding!' and forced Souji into an uncomfortable, ultimately pointless conversation. But back then, where Souji was concerned, Yosuke was _all_ curiosity. He wanted to know everything, from why Souji dyed his hair to how it felt when he missed in battle. That's just what he figured best friends _did_ -- tell each other everything, no matter what, in excruciating detail.

But he knew better now. Knew _Souji_ better now. Knew him well enough to guess at what his best friend was trying to say. It was hard for him to understand, sure, if only because he was the exact opposite. Where Yosuke was an open book -- free for anyone to waltz in and leave their own mark -- Souji's pages were clamped firmly shut. Occasionally he would let a personal detail slip, but only to make you feel better about _yourself_ or soothe _your own_ fear. Of course it would be hard to accept the love he received as real -- if someone hardly knew you, how could they love you?

Souji was heading towards the door, but slowed his pace when he heard no footsteps behind him, "Yosuke?"

The brunette looked up, considering his best friend for a long moment. What Souji had said was mostly right, if he were to be honest. There were always going to be people who loved the mask Souji wore for them instead of Souji himself. But he wasn't _completely_ right. Their first year as friends had been marked most notably by Yosuke's own issues, but here and there a memory would surface. Souji's shoulder pressed warm against his own while they sat alone in a hospital corridor, the crack and pop of joints when they wrestled by the Samegawa, the cooking lessons Yosuke all but forced Souji into giving him -- if only so he could get his best friend to actually _do_ some grocery shopping as December wore on and Souji's face grew pale.

There were times after that too -- too many to count -- on the phone or after a lengthy separation, when the mask would slip and fall, leaving only Souji in its place. Yosuke loved those moments. _Savored_ those moments. Let those moments carry him through times, quite like this, when Souji shut himself off.

"You're not getting cold feet again, are you?" Souji tried again, a faint smile playing across his lips. For his part, Yosuke finally got to his feet, taking a deep breath before offering a smile of his own.

"Nah, I'm done with that," he waved, gathering a few pieces of paper (his own pathetic attempt at vows) from the vanity before hurrying to join Souji by the door, "My groin would never recover if I left _her_ at the alter."

"Point," Souji chuckled, resting a hand on the knob, "But if you're late, she's going to blame both of us, so I-"

He was cut off by the feel of arms encircling his waist, holding him in place while the door remained shut. There was no resistance from him, even when Yosuke's knuckles went white from gripping the fabric of his suit jacket. They stayed that way for a while, both of them clinging tightly to the other with nothing but the steady soundtrack of their own breath in each other's ears. It was Yosuke who finally pulled away, red faced and embarrassed, while Souji blinked at him in confusion -- an unspoken "what was that for?" echoing across his features.

"I…," Yosuke began, blushing anew, "It's stupid, but I just…"

It didn't take Souji long to get the hint, smile growing almost to the point of bursting. It was a good look on him, Yosuke had to admit.

"We should get going," he finally said, this time successfully opening the door without interruption.

"Dude," Yosuke scowled, looking every inch the petulant teenager he thought he had left behind in Inaba, "I was sort of trying to tell you something."

Souji pressed a hand to Yosuke's back, gently pushing him outside into the hall and down towards the lobby where a small crowd of friends, relatives, and relatives-to-be were already gathered to meet him.

"Don't worry about it," he whispered, leaning down next to his ear just before Yosuke was intercepted by one of his large, teary aunts, "I already know."

* * *

We are nearing the end! Thank you for all the amazing feedback -- it really brings a smile to my face. :D


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